Pulte’s Move to Fix Credit Scores Is Bad News for Homebuyers
Bill Pulte declared by tweet that homebuying costs would be lower if FICO had competition—a move that instead risks pushing credit-score prices higher.
The credit score that helps determine the biggest financial decision in most Americans’ life—their mortgage—is controlled by an exclusive club. In July, Bill Pulte, who leads the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), upended that system with a 121-character post on X.
Pulte, a combustible bureaucrat sometimes referred to as “mini Trump,” decided that for the first time, the FICO score would get some competition in the home-loan market. Government-sponsored mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac would begin backing loans scored by VantageScore Solutions LLC, a FICO alternative that had been a marginal participant in homebuying.